I can't get over the number of parents, of all age, who constantly tell you "Oh just wait you have no idea how much work a kid is and how little alone time you and Scott are going to get for the next 30 years of your life!!" Now I am not saying that I think kids are easy (by any means) or that having them is going to increase Scott and I's leisurely life. But I am saying "DUH." I hate how people assume that everyone that is having kids is under the impression that it's all fun and games! Scott and I have always wanted kids. Scott and I did not have kids four years ago because DUH kids are hard work!! Forever. That is why we waited so long to have them! We both knew that when we had kids, we wanted to really have them. We want it to be about them and about our family and do family things and take vacations together and part of that is knowing that it isn't going to be a big ball of fun all the time. Kids are kids. They don't always listen, they don't always make things easy, they don't always make things stress free, but it's all worth it to have a big house full of love and family :) And while I don't think you can physically prepare yourself for children (no sleep what?!), I think you can mentally prepare yourself for the massive change your life is about to undergo. So Scott and I are embracing that change and are super excited to be in this place now and cannot wait for our man to get here!! But we also know that our relaxing, alone time is slipping away rapidly. So we knew we wanted to follow in the footsteps of many new parents and get the heck out of town for a weekend to just enjoy each other and the peacefulness that we find in each other when we're away from our crazy life, home, and families.
So I left it up to Scott. We knew we didn't want to go too far for too long (I'm a paranoid freak and I don't want to be stuck away from my trusted doctors should something go wrong!), but we knew we wanted to get out of here for a little bit. Scott took the initiative and a couple of weeks ago said "How about a weekend at the Irish Cottage in Galena?" I said "Book it baby, I trust you" ;)
And he did good :) (as I knew he would!) Galena proved the perfect weekend away for us. Neither of us have ever been there and it's just far enough away to be away, but not too far for a drive with a bladder challenged, leg cramping preggo. And we were both pleasantly surprised to find out that once you get about a half hour away from there, Illinois turns gorgeous! Seriously, we're so used to driving south or west and it just seems like everywhere you turn in IL, you find a flat cornfield. But Galena and its surrounding areas (up in the northwest corner of IL) are super hilly and scenic and makes you feel like you're on a coast or something. We were gone for two days and I was super relaxed and felt like I was gone for over a week and like I had gone states away! We enjoyed the beautiful scenery, the ideal weather, the quaint, quiet Irish cottage, and a low key weekend relaxing with each other and browsing through the old town and specialty shops. I ate my heart out in good food, ice cream, chocolate, and salt water taffy and got to go for a swim! (Exercise, hurrah!) And Saturday, Scott and I even got to take a nice hour and a half nap, together. Without stressing over all the other things we should be doing! It was perfect ... until Scott woke me up and told me to get in the shower so we didn't miss dinner. It was then that I realized "Wow that was the last Saturday afternoon nap Scott and I will probably get to share for years." :( I know the baby will be more than worth it, but the thought still broke my heart just a little.
Here's some pics from Galena! There was also a car show going on this weekend and as a daughter to an old car junkie, I had to take some pics for him as well! If you are looking for a peaceful, quick getaway, I highly recommend getting your butt out to Galena! Thanks Scotty for a wonderful weekend, love you!! xo :)
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